For when things don't go as planned

+ guilty of the millennial pause + taking mental health days

Hi friend,

Did you know that I always write these letters to you the day before you get them?

Sometimes it’s even less than 7 hours before you get them (we don’t like to talk about those hectic days).

I bring this up because today (Wednesday), when I’m writing this to you, things started a bit chaotic.

Our dog’s barking for hours at our home project contractors. There’s noise everywhere. I was supposed to write this at a coffee shop, but they’re closing early today. I have so much work to do.

In short: Things didn’t go the way I planned.

Maybe you’re going through a similar time. You plotted everything out in your head, factored in all the variables, and then… all hell breaks loose.

Today, I’m taking a note from my friend Kara Cutruzzula’s latest newsletter:

“Find a little bit of what you can control, as imperfect as it might be.”

I found a bit of imperfect control and finished a task I’ve been putting off for weeks in less than 30 minutes. And now I can breathe a little deeper.

Let me say it again so you remember you’re not alone: Things will not always go the way we planned. But that doesn’t mean you have to give up.

Control, no matter how small, can still be found amidst the chaos.

I believe in you to find it.

with warmth + love,

N

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📚 The Click Throughs
Long-form reads for the marketing geek + content creator

Wall Street Journal: Tired of Instagram? Try Discord
This piece dives into the departure of users from Instagram to other social platforms, suggesting chat apps like Discord as the new frontier due to their lack of algorithmic feeds. I’m not sure if it’s a good alternative, but maybe I just haven’t found the right Discord server.

Embedded: The Twitterification of TikTok
We’ve all seen the downward spiral of opinion tweets. When someone shares an opinion on something + is then scolded for not accounting for other opinions or experiences. And now it’s happening in TikTok comments which begs the question: how will their moderation shape the app experience?

Wired: BeReal Basics: How to Use the ‘Unfiltered’ Social Media App
Because we’re not about judgment around here – this piece is a very helpful guide to the latest social app BeReal, its purpose/offering, and how to use the app. Always ask questions, friends. It’s okay if you don’t know, but this one should help!

The Atlantic: Are You Sure You’re Not Guilty of the ‘Millennial Pause’?
I didn’t realize the ‘millennial pause’ was a thing until I saw a TikTok about Taylor Swift taking a beat after hitting “record” to start talking in a video… and then I realized I 100% do this. For all my fellow millennials trying to act cool, this article is for you (and yes it’s also by Kate Lindsay because she’s incredible + deserving of two articles in this issue).

Link in Bio: Your Approval Process is Ruining Your Social Strategy
Hot off the presses is this interview between two of my favorite people: social media savant Rachel Karten + social strategist queen Shelby Jacobs (of Sour Patch Kids + Swedish Fish). It’s not often you get to hear from the actual in-the-field social visionaries working the magic behind an account, so make time for this one.

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🧘🏼‍♀️ Mindful Moment
One actionable thing to get you through this week

Lately, I’ve been trying to incorporate breath work into my day to stimulate the vagus nerve and better address stress + anxiety.

Let’s take a moment for this simple breath work exercise from REI (doesn’t require anything other than ~5 mins!):

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🔗 Link(s) in Bio
Things I’ve been loving that have absolutely nothing to do with marketing or business

Harvard Business Review: How to Recover from Work Stress, According to Science – This piece is very logical + expertise-based, if you’re looking for a more tactical + hard-hitting list.

Bon Appétit: The ‘Bobafication’ of American Chain Drinks Is Here – I love boba but it’s pretty wild how Dunkin’ + other popular American chains are all adding boba wherever they want.

New York Times: When Work Weighs You Down, Take a ‘Sad Day’ – This is an oldie but a goodie. As a freelancer, I’m really trying to detach myself from presenteeism + need to practice taking more mental health days when I need them. This piece offers tactical ideas.

Bloomberg: More Women Are Injuring Their Feet With the Return to Office High Heels – A warning that this piece is behind a paywall BUT this headline just made me cringe so much. Not that I don’t love a gorgeous pair of heels but why was this the norm for so long??

The Verge: Things we’ve learned working from home – This list from The Verge staff might make you feel less alone if you’ve been WFH for the past 2+ years or maybe it’ll give you some good ideas. Personally, still working on establishing a routine + shutting the computer off.

NPR’s Life Kit: The boundaries we set help us guard our energy. Here’s how to do it – Did you know that you don’t always have to say yes to people? Yeah, I’m learning that too.

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💭 Content Calendar
Ideas for you to take into your week ahead as a content creator

Take a moment to remember how you felt when you first started creating content.

When you made your first video or photo or wrote your first piece of copy.

Remember how thrilling (+ maybe slightly terrifying) that felt.

We get so lost in the day to day of creating content calendars + pushing to be more.

We forget how fun + exciting what it’s like to create something.

Remember that content creation can (+ often should) be fun.

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👋 The (ring) Light at the End of the Tunnel

Repeating this one to myself: Who are you rushing for? (credit: @alex)